There was once a man named Hiram Revels. On February 25th, 1870, he took his oath of office to become a U.S. Senator. He was not just any Senator. He was the first African American Senator in U.S. history. Revels was a part of the Republican party from the state of Mississippi. His tenure was very short in that it ended in March 1871, but during this time he advocated for education and civil rights of Black Americans. Also, he spoke against racial segregation. His tenure opened doors for African Americans in politics, such as Blanche K. Bruce, who became the second elected U.S. Senator in 1879. He went on to serve full term.
Here’s some historical facts. During this time, the Republican party was the more liberal one and was created in 1854. This was the party of the Northern States who had a vision of stopping the expansion of slavery and creating civil rights for all. The Democratic Party which was created in 1828 was one that represented the views of southern states. They were for the business of farming which also meant being in support of slavery to help maintain them.
It wasn’t until after the Civil War when their was a change in party values. Many of the leaders of the Republican party became richer. Once they felt they did all they could for African Americans, they discontinued the fight in Southern states and prioritized business. Decades later, once the Great Depression took place, they completely reversed their priorities to focus even more on this model. When Franklin D. Roosevelt ran for President, his agenda was for the average person to receive support from the government. This was the turning point for both parties. The Democratic Party had a mission to serve the average American and the Republican party being more about the business. Most African Americans in this country is now most identify with the Democratic party.
Since Bruce full term as Senator, there have been only 12 African Americans to serve in this position. The first after him was Edward W. Brook III a Republic from Massachusetts in 1967. The most recent has been Angela D. Alsobrooks of Maryland and Lisa Blunt Rochester of Delaware. Both women are Democrats and they just began their first term. Of these 12, only 2 have represented the Republican Party. In such a large country where African Americans have lived for hundreds of years, having only 12 Black Senators since 1870 is not okay. My hope is that this would change and their is more representation for African Americans and other minority groups as we move forward.